Check-writing machine



No. 607,833. Patented July 26, I898. H. CLARKE.

CHECK WRITING MACHINE.

(Application flied July 27, 189B. Renewed Dec. 29, 1897.)

(No Model.)

3 Sheets-Sheet l.

WITNESSES x we wsms PETERS m. F'HOTO-LITHO, mswwsmm o c No. 607,833. Patented July 26, I898. H. CLARKE.

CHECK WRITING MACHINE.

(Application filed July 27. 1895. Renewed Dec. 29, 1897.}

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-$heei 2.

WITNESSES Tm: worms puns co, Puuvoumov. wsmwmom o. c

HENRY CLARKE, OF

CHECK-WRIT! PATENT OFFICE.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

NG MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 607,833, dated July 26, 1898.

Application filed July 2'7, 1895. Renewed December 29, 1897. Serial No. 664,421 (No model.)

To (oi Z whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY CLARKE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Check-lVriting Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

.The object of my invention is to provide a device whereby the amount for which checks, bills, notes, &c., are to be drawn maybe rapidly and accurately printed thereon, and in a check, &c., to be used therewith, whereby security will be aiforded against the raising or changing of such amount; and for these purposes my invention consists in suitable types adapted to print upon the check, &c., the amount called for, in suitable means whereby the desired types may be thrown into position to print, and in the construction, arrangement, and combinations of the several parts of which it is composed, as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which corres 'ionding parts are designated by similar marks of reference, Figure 1 is a plan view of a device embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a section thereof on line a: to of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front elevation, partially in section. Fig. 4 is a detail view of one of the types. Fig. 5 is aview of the several type-wheels as developed on a plane surface. Fig. (3 is a plan view of a check adapted to be used with the device illustrated in the preceding figures.

In the following specification I shall use the word check as denoting any paper on which it is desired to print, as the construction shown in the accompanying drawings and herein described is particularly adapted for filling out checks and other negotiable instruments in which it is desired to express the amount twice-in words and figures; but it is obvious that my invention may be applied for the filling in of any paper in which safety against alteration and against error is required.

The types from which the printing is done may be cast integral with the type-wheels hereinafter described or may be secured thereto and cast separately, in the accompanying drawings being shown as secured within dovetailed channels formed in the periphery of the several type-wheels and running from side to side thereof, and it is obvious that a single type-block having all the characters necessary to express the desired amount may be secured within such a groove, or that several individual type, each of which carries one of the component letters of the word or amount, may be assembled within such a channel, and in either case I shall for the purpose of this specification call the single block or the assemblage of them in a single channel for the purpose of expressing an amount-such as One thousand, One hundred, (30.- as a type. In the accompanying drawings twelve such type-wheels are shown, each of which carry types adapted to make an imprint corresponding to the value of the wheel carrying them. The cent-wheels A and o. and A and a, respectively, represent units and tens, the wheels A an d A being arranged side by side, as are also the wheels at and a, each said wheels havin the numerals thereon from O to 9. The dollar-wheels l3 and Z), (representing units,) B and Z), (representing tens,) B and b (representing hundreds,) and B and b (representing thousands,) are also provided, the wheels 13, B, 13 and B being arranged side by side with the centwheels A and A, and have the types thereon representing values in printed words, while the wheels Z), Z), Z1 and b are also arranged side by side with the cent-wheels a and a, the types thereon representing values in numerals, and I shall in the following specification refer to the wheels B, B, &c., as well as the wheels A and A, as word wheels, while I shall refer to the wheels Z), 5, &c., as well as the wheels a and a, as numberwheels. All of the type-wheels are loosely mounted side by side upon the shaft 1, mounted transversely in the front of a suitable casing 2, which forms the framework of the machine, the word-wheels being on the left of the casing, while the number-wheels are on the right thereof. The several wheels are of different widths in order to comply with the requirements of the varying breadth of the types thereon, but each wheel has upon a corresponding end a pinion 3.

Each of the pinions 3 is engaged by one of a series of rack-bars 4, each of which is secured to a separate frame 4, which slides upon a guide-rod 5, mounted in the casing and running from the front to the rear thereof. The rack-bars which actuate the corresponding word and number wheels are connected together,so as to move simultaneously,by means of plates 6, which connect the lower ends of the frames carrying them, the said plates being superimposed upon each other and being slotted, as at 7, to permit the connection of a plate lying beneath them with a frame above them, as is necessary, owing to the fact that the frame of the bar actuating the right-hand word-wheel is connected to that of the bar actuating the right-hand number-wheel, and the frame of the bar actuating the left-hand word-wheel-is connected to that of the bar actuating the left-hand number-wheel, the frames of the bars of the intermediate wheels being connected in similar couples, and thus it will be seen that upon moving the frame of any rack-bar the corresponding word and number wheels will be moved to corresponding, causing the types thereon representing similar amounts to uniformly and to simultaneously come into the printing position, as will be hereinafter described.

In order to provide means for moving the rack-bars so as to cause the desired types to come into printing position, I secure upon the top of each frame 4, which carries a rackbar that actuates a word-wheel, an indicatorplate 10 of any desired material, each of the said plates having printed thereon and in the same order the characters representedby the types upon the corresponding word-wheel, and having opposite to each imprint and upon the edge of the plate a recess or notch 11, in which a suitable pointed instrument or point may be introduced to move the plate, and with the plate the corresponding wheel, a stop-plate 12 being mounted upon the top of the casing to limit the movement of the point, the several parts being so adjusted that when the point is inserted in a recess 11 in any plate and drawn forward until it is stopped by the stop-plate the type upon the corresponding word-wheel which will be thrown into position for printing will be the one indicated by the imprint upon the indicator opposite the said notch, the corresponding number-wheel being similarly moved, and in Fig. I

1 of the accompanying drawings the device is shown as in position to print the following words and figures: Nineteen thousand 547% #jtninety-seven 80. $19,097.80.

In order to restore all the bars and typewheels to their normal position, a rod 13 is mounted in the casing, sliding-on a shelf 14, formed on the lower edge of the pendent partition 15, which separates the word from the number-wheels, the rod having an arm 13 thereon that projects in front of the forward ends of the frames 4", which carry the rackbars that actuate the number-wheels to outside of one end of the casing, where it forms a handle, and thus when the arm is moved toward the rear it contacts with the ends of the frames and carries them and all the rack-bars back with it, restoring all their parts to their normal and initial position.

A top plate 16 is secured to the casing above the type-wheels and has formed therein a longitudinal slot 17, through which the wheels are adapted to print, an inked ribbon 18 being laid above the slot, the ends of the ribbon being secured upon the ribbon-rollers 18, which are shown as located in the bottom of the casing and provided with handles 18 upon the forward ends of the axles 18 whereby the ribbon may be fed from time to time, suitable antifriction-rollers 18 being provided to permit the ribbon to move freely, the said antifriction-rollers being by preference mounted upon elastic axles 18, so that they may possess a spring, thus serving to constantly maintain the ribbon taut and prevent the creasing thereof. In order to hold the ribbon in place above the slot 17, a coverplate 19 is affixed above the top plate and at a slight distance therefrom, forming agroove 19, in which one edge of the ribbon is received.

The platen 20 consists in a plate covered upon its under surface with felt, rubber, &c., and is mounted upon the forward ends of arms 21, the rear ends of which are pivoted in the rear upper corners of the casing, and in the accompanying drawings the platen is shown as arranged below the stop-plate 12, which is shown as consisting of two thicknesses of sheet metal slightly separated from each other, the indicator-plates sliding in the spaces between the two thicknesses. The platen, which is held up by means of springs 22, acting upon the arms 21, is depressed by means of a flat-headed post 23, rising through the stop-plate, so that by striking the said post the platen will be depressed and pressed upon the types lying under the slot 17 in the toplplate. Suitable stops are formed upon the top plate, so that the position of the check thereon may be properly adjusted, and I by preference form these stops in the form of studs 24, which are adapted to be received in suitably-placed perforations in the check, as will be hereinafter described, and it will be evident that if a check be placed upon the top plate and beneath the platen and the latter pushed down the check will have imprinted thereon the characters represented by the types that may have been previously placed by means of the indicator-plates in printing position-that is to say, beneath the slot 17. It will also be seen that as the movement of each indicatorplate moves two wheels-a word and number 1that the amount called for will be twice printed on the check, the first imprint being the amount printed in words and the other the same amount expressed in numerals.

In order to prevent any slight carelessness in moving the proper notch of the indicatorplates exactly to the line of the edge of the stop-plate and to prevent the wheels turning under the jar caused by the moving of the platen or by any other cause, I form upon the side of each rack-bar 4 and near the lower edge thereof a second rack 25, composed of a series of comparatively large sharp teeth, which are adapted to be engaged by a lock-bar 26, hung from the pivot-ed arms 21, which carry the platen, the said lock-bar being recessed at proper points 27 along its length to permit it to move down and engage the racks 25 without engaging the upper racks, which actuate the wheels, the edge of the lock-bar being sharpened. Thus when the platen is depressed, the lock-bar, moving down with it and before the platen causes the imprint upon the check, engages the teeth of the racks 25, and if the rack-bars, or any of them, are not in the exact position to cause the types upon the several wheels to properly aline with each other, move them slightly in, forcingitself between the bottom of the adjoining teeth thereon and bring the types into alinement, at the same time positively locking the wheels against movement until the platen is again raised.

In the embodiment of the invention as shown in the accompanying drawings each of the wheels has twenty equidistant dovetailed channels b cut in its periphery, the wheels being of uniform diameter but of different widths, as before stated. In these channels the types are secured by means of keys 25, the thousands word-wheel-i. 6., the word-wheel of the fourth orderhavin g nineteen of its channels occupied by types printing the even thousands from One thousand to Nineteen thousand, and the corresponding number-wheel has the nineteen similar channels filled with the types printing the numerals from 1 to 19, each preceded by the dollar-mark, the remaining channel (that which is normally under the platen) having simply a type representing the dollarmark. The hundreds word-wheelt'. c. the word-wheel of the third order-has only ten of its channels occupied, nine by types representing the even hundreds from One hundred to Nine hundred, and the corresponding number-wheel has the nine types representing the units from l to 9 in nine corresponding channels, while the channel which is normally under the platen has a type representing 0, it being inadvisable to place the dollar-mark therein, owing to the fact that the hundreds-wheel is, in the described arrangement of wheels, an intermediate wheel and not an end one, and it is often desirable to fill in cheeks callling for so many thousands and no hundreds. The tens (dollar) word-wheel-i. a, the word wheel of the second orderhas the types thereon representing the ten numbers from Ten to Nineteen inclusive, and also types representing the eight numbers, advancing by ten from Twenty to Ninety, and the corresponding number-wheel those channels which correspond to the numbers from Ten to Nineteen. on the wordwheel are each occupied by a type representing 1, that being the number of times ten is contained in such numbers, and has those channels which correspond to the numbers from Twenty to Ninety filled with the types representing the eight numbers from 2 to 9, inclusive, the channel which is normally under the platen having a type of the character 0 for the reasons above stated in respect to the numberwheel of the third order. The units (dollar) wheeli. e., the dollar word wheel of the first orderhas nine of the channels thereof filled with types representing the units from One to Nine and has the remaining channels filled with any arbitrarily-selected type adapted to fill up the otherwise blank spaceas, for instance, with ellipses, as shown-and the corresponding numberwhee1 has two complete sets of types arranged in the channels thereof, the one set of type being arranged to correspond with the types of corresponding value on the word-wheel,while the other set is also arranged consecutively in the wheel, the type 1 thereof being separated from the type 9 of the first set of type by two channels, in each of which (and one of them is the channel which is normally under the platen) is placed a type representing O. This peculiar arrangement of the type upon the wheels of the first and second order permits the setting of the device for amounts from Ten to Nineteen with but one movement of the setting-point. This is accomplished in the following manner: The indicator plate corresponding to the tens-wheelthat is to say, the indicatorplate of the second orderhas, like all the other indicator-plates, imprints thereon corresponding to the types upon the corresponding word-wheel, while the indicator-plate of the units-wheelthat is to say, the indicatorplate of the first order-has not only recesses in one edge opposite the imprints thereon, but has also a series of recesses or notches 11 in its opposite edge and opposite to and registering with the notches in the indicator-plate of the second order, which correspond to the numbers from Ten to Nineteen, so that upon inserting the setting-point in any of the said recesses 11 and 11 in the two plates they will be moved simultaneously, and with them will revolve the corresponding wheels. Thus when the point is inserted in the notches opposite Seventeen on the indicator-plate of the second order and drawn against the stop IIO plate the word-wheel of the second order will be so moved as to bring the type representing Seventeen beneath the platen, and

the word-wheel of the first order will be moved so as to bring-a channel filled with ellipses in alinement therewith. At the same time the number-wheel of the second'order-z'. e., the tens-wheelwill be so moved as to bring one of the channels filled with a type representing .1 under the platen and units numberwheels be moved so as to bring the type representing 7 into alinement therewith, thus when the platen is depressed printing 17.

All of the word-wheels have the channels which are normally under the platen filled with types designed to fill what would otherwise be blank spaces in the check, such as ellipses, and the word Type may have similar characters thereon if necessary to fully fill the full breadth of the wheels, so that the check shall be filled with printing, thus preventing the raisin gthereof. The cent-wheels, both lettered and numbered, have the numerals l to 9 thereon, as well as types representing O, the latter characters being normally under the platen, all the types upon the said cent-wheels being so placed thereon that in printing they will be slightly raised above the characters representing dollars, as is usual in writing checks by hand.

It will of course be understood that the character of types used upon the Wheels and the arrangement of the wheels themselves and of the types thereon may be varied at pleasure to suit any particular monetary system or desired use of my invention without departing from the same, the system of arrangement hereinbefore described being merely described as one which will be found to be eminently suited to the decimal system in use in the United States.

In connection with my invention as described above I prefer to use a check of the character shown in Fig. 6, and in that figure I have shown a check in which the space in which the amount for which the check is drawn is to be printed is divided into a series of spaces representing, respectively, the units of the first, second, and third orders, &c., the said spaces being designated by the marks of reference 29 29 29 ,&c.,and in the space of the first order the number of units of that order is to be printed, while in the space of the second order the number of units of that-2'. e, the number of tens-is to be printed, and so on, and I may, if I so desire, imprint upon the check in any suitable manner, as by a watermark, the particular value of each space. Each check has also perforations 30 therein adapted to receive the studs upon the top plate, whereby the check is adjusted and held in position during the printing, and it will be seen that by varying the width and relative position of the type-wheels and the position of the studs 2& on the top plate of each machine and by correspondingly varying the width and position of the several spaces and the position of the perforations 30 in the checks intended to be used in connection therewith each machine may be rendered capable of only printing on the check peculiarly adapted therefor, thus greatly increasing the danger of detection and decreasing the facility with which checks may be raised or forged.

In order to prevent the erasing of amounts printed in accordance with my above described invention, I may, if I desire, place projections upon the face of the types, such projections being shown in Fig. 4 in the form of pins, which will pass through the check and, carrying with them the ink from the inking-ribbon, will impregnate the whole thickness of the paper and prevent the erasure of the printing by the mere removal of the surface of the paper.

Having thus described my invention, I do not wish to limit myself to the peculiar construction herein shown and described, as such may be varied without departing from the nature of my invention; but

What I do claim is 1. In a device for filling in amounts in words and figures, the combination, with two series of type wheels, the corresponding wheels of the two series being connected together and having types thereon of equal value, the types upon the one series representing words and upon the other numbers, of means whereby the equivalent types upon each pair of coupled wheels may be brought into position for simultaneous printing, substantially as described.

2; In a device for filling in the amounts in checks, in words and numbers, the combination, with two series of type-wheels, each wheel of each series having types thereon of equal value with the types upon the corresponding wheel of the other series, the types upon the one series forming words, and the other numbers, of a series of indicators, each of which is connected to one of the corresponding wheels of the two series, whereby the corresponding types upon the coupled wheels may be brought simultaneously into position for printing, substantially as described.

3. In a device for filling in the amounts in checks, in words and numbers, the combination, with two series of type-wheels, each wheel of each series having types thereon of equal value with the types upon the corresponding wheel of the other series, the types upon the one series of wheels forming words and the types upon the other forming numbers, of pinions upon the said wheels, racks gearing therewith, the racks engaging the pinions upon corresponding wheels of the two series being connected in pairs, and means connected to each pair of racks whereby they may be moved to bring the desired types upon the corresponding wheels actuated thereby into position for printing, substantially as described.

4. The combination, in a device for filling in the amounts in checks in words and numbers, of two series of type-wheels, the corre- IIC sponding wheels of the two series being connected together and having types of equal value thereon, the types upon the one series representing words and the other numbers, of a top plate adjacent to the wheels and provided with a stop, whereby a check may be adjusted in position to receive the simultaneous impriutfrom both series of wheels, substantially as described.

5. In a device for filling in the amounts in checks, in words and numbers, the combination, of two series of type-wheels, the corresponding wheels of the two series being connected together, and having types thereon of equal value, the types upon the one series representing words and upon the other numbers, and a slotted top plate, adjacent to the wheels, through which the types upon the two series are adapted to simultaneouslyimprint upon a single check, substantially as described.

6. In a device for filling in the amounts of checks, in words and numbers, the combination, with a shaft, of two series of type-wheels, mounted thereon side by side, the corresponding wheels of the two series being connected together and having the types thereon of equal value, the types upon the one series representing words and upon the other numbers, and a top plate having a slot therein through which the-types upon both series are adapted to simultaneously print upon a single check, substantially as described.

7. The co1nbination,with a type-wheel,having a pinion thereon, of a rack-bar engaging therewith, whereby motion may be imparted to the said wheel to bring any of the types thereon into position for printing, a platen, and a lock-bar engaging the rack-bar upon the approach of the platen and type-Wheel, substantially as described.

8. The combination, with a series of typewheels, each of which has a pinion thereon, of a series of rack-bars adapted to engage the said pinions and to impart motion thereof, a platen, and a lock-bar actuated upon the approach of the type-wheels and platen to engage the said rack-bars, whereby the types are alined and held against displacement, substantially as described.

9. The combination, with a wheel, having a series of numeral types upon its periphery, each of which is of the same value, of a second wheel having a series of types upon its periphery representing different values, two indicator-plates having recesses in their contiguous edges, and a connection between the said plates and the two type-wheels whereby a movement of the former will be communicated to the latter, substantially as described.

10. The combination, with a type-wheel, of a rack-bar provided with two series of teeth, one of which engages the said type-wheel, a platen, and a lock-bar actuated upon the approach of the wheel and platen to engage the second series of teeth, substantially as described.

11. The combination, with a type-wheel, of a rack-bar provided with two series of teeth, one of which engages the said type-wheel, a platen, an indicatorplate provided with a series of recesses corresponding to the types upon the wheel, and connected to the rackbar, and a lock-bar actuated upon the approach of the type-wheel and platen to engage the second series of teeth upon the rack, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY CLARKE.

\Vitnesses:

JAMns W. WARD, GUsTAv. A. STURTZ. 

